Accept That People Will Say (and Do) the Dumbest Things

I was interviewing a candidate for the entry-level construction position for which we hire about 30-40 people a month. As I was going over his application, I realized that he had not indicated a reason for leaving his most recent position. So, of course, I asked him. Here is the answer that I received: "Well, I was working in the ditch with another employee, and he was really getting on my nerves with his humming. I told him that if he didn't shut up, I was going to hit him over the head with the shovel and bury him. They fired me. But I think he just took it the wrong way."

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One of the questions I ask at an interview is, "What is it about your favorite supervisor that made him or her your favorite?" One gentleman said, "He always covered for me." I then asked him, "What do you mean by that?"

"Well, when I was late or hung over he would come up with a good story to tell everyone."

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One of my recruiters had called in sick and asked me if I could do a couple of interviews that they already had scheduled for the day. The candidates coming in were interviewing for a call center position. Right after lunch I was called to the reception area, because I had a candidate waiting for an interview. When I got to the lobby, I introduced myself and asked her to follow me to one of the interview rooms. We sat down and began the interview. Everything was going fine, and then I asked the question that I always asked every candidate at the end of the interview: "If you could change anything about yourself, what would you change?" I usually ask this question because people give answers that they do not realize would be harmful in an interview, such as "I wish I did not procrastinate as much" or "I wish I was more organized," and so on. This particular candidate looked at me and replied, "I would go and get implants so I could have a bigger rack." At first I just sat there stunned, and then I quickly opened the office door, thanked her for coming, and showed her out. Ever since that day, I have changed my question to "if you could change anything about yourself at work, what would you change?"

The hardest part of this whole experience was trying to keep from looking straight at her chest after her response and keeping my composure.

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I represent a government entity that manages all criminal records, civil records, and court transactions. I once had a woman come to my office and ask for an application. She said she thought this would be a great place to work after having seen what our employees do in the court room on frequent occasions. To make conversation as she filled out the application, I asked what had brought her to the courtroom so frequently. She then proceeded to tell me that she had been charged with several criminal offences and thought that this would be a great place for her to work, since she already knew all about court.

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When checking an applicant's background for a job at our local courthouse, I learned that the person had a warrant for her arrest for stealing at the bank from which she was just terminated. Imagine applying for a job at the courthouse when you have a warrant for your arrest!

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I was working for a company that owns thousands of restaurants in a chain. I received a call about a night-shift manager at one of our stores who had done several odd things. First, she locked the doors to the restaurant prior to closing time. Second, she sat there in the lobby while customers banged on the doors from outside. Third, she was making out with her boyfriend in the lobby while customers stood outside. Fourth, she was walking around the store putting curses on the employees and telling them their eyes were going to bleed.

I traveled to the store and met with the manager to take her statement. She didn't deny anything, but it was her explanation that blew me away: "Well, you see, I'm a werewolf, and it was a full moon last night. I was starting to itch, and that's why this happened.

I stepped away from the table and called our corporate attorney who, upon hearing my story, put the telephone down and started laughing out loud. She confirmed that there was no legal protection for a werewolf. A witch, yes, she said, but not a werewolf.

I returned to the table and told the manager that I thought she should resign her employment at that time, or else risk being terminated for cause. She resigned without incident.

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By now, you're probably thinking, "They made these up." But we didn't. You may even have had similar experiences or, at least, ones that are just as wacky. The question is not, "Why do candidates and employees say and do such things?" Rather, the question for HR professionals is, "How can I learn to spot the hidden signs and 'red flags' before we hire them?"

Many of us have been taught that we must carefully screen applicants' backgrounds for criminal records, substance abuse, poor attendance, substandard work performance, harassment complaints, and other potential problems in the workplace. We know that the "tests" for these potential performance problems must be job-related, and that the methods we use must be face-neutral, reliable, and valid. But how can you screen for antisocial behavior or for people who think they are werewolves?

Strong vs. Weak Situations

Thirty years ago, psychologist Walter Mischel described the way people decide how they should behave by describing the extent to which they pay attention to their immediate surroundings. He found that when the situation was very clear about how someone should act, the person followed the situational cues very well and acted accordingly. For example, if a person came into the room you are in right now and shouted, "Fire!" most people in the room would clearly know to exit the room as quickly as they could without being told. In other words, Mischel called this a "strong" situation — that is, the situation itself strongly suggests how one should behave.

However, when the situation does not send clear messages about how to behave, or sends no messages at all, people tend to rely on their own personalities or innate tendencies to guide their behavior. Imagine that at some time in your life you have arrived at a party or gathering, only to find that you are underdressed or overdressed in comparison with the other guests there. Or, you have entered the party, only to realize that you don't know anyone there, so you are not sure what appropriate conversations might be. These examples present what Mischel called "weak" situations: the situational cues...